SERIAN: Residents of Kampung Paon Sungai Rimu Bakung near here claim their pet dogs have been acting strangely since the end of April.
Farmer Arry Baee, 46, said his pet dogs had gone “wild” and began attacking and biting other villagers and as a result, the canines had to be put to sleep.
“We noticed changes in the dogs, such as their tails were downward, they were salivating excessively and were acting aggressively by pouncing on anything, including trees, humans or even their own tails.
“Gradually, the dogs’ behaviour took a turn for the worse as they were running aimlessly,” he said when met at the village today.
Arry added that there was a case of a dog which bit another, then ran “like crazy” towards the road and was hit by a car. The villagers decided to put the injured dog to sleep.
Yesterday, the Health Ministry confirmed that three children, including two siblings from Serian district, Sarawak, were infected with rabies and are currently being treated at the Sarawak General Hospital.
A check on the village, located about 80km from Kuching, found residents going about their daily chores as usual and that there were some dogs still roaming freely in the area.
Resident Paul Ken Gapaya, 57, said several villagers had been bitten by dogs since late April.
“As far as I know, more than 10 individuals in this village have been bitten by dogs, but they immediately sought treatment at nearby clinics,” he added. – BERNAMA